They also take you back in time when you were younger, much younger. They play an important part in rejuvenating the mind and the feeling of going back to childhood, makes you happy and you look forward with a more positive prospective,
The other night we were watching a very cleverly made program from Akala ( Kingslee James Daley. A poet and rapper), who as a poet singer was tracing back the adventure of Homer story of Ulysses ( Odysseus) and the way ancient Greek would tell this story to spectators by singing and playing the ancient instruments.
As a young student I remember reading the book and the most powerful impression I had was the feelings of sadness and the desire to go back home that Ulysses felt , as he was missing his wife and the island of Ithaca .I felt the same sentiments as I also wanted to go back home to my own island , Sardinia ( I was in college in Pesaro studying when I was 12 year old ). And the best memories of Sardinia were for me the working holidays in our vineyard country house. We use to go there for a month and an half ,September and October.
There is the place where we are going back. Or, I am going back as lesley has no connections to this place. No memories and feelings of youth attached to it, except the recent times when we met and had good times there.
Like Ulysses I was missing the smell of the land, the breeze and the sunshine; the hot days and the cool water of the river where we use to fish by hand, walking in it with barefoot .But unlike Ulysses facing the giant Polyphemus and getting him drunk to escape, I have good memories of the grape harvest and the crashing to make wine. I did not need to escape, on the contrary I wanted to stay longer.
I suppose Ithaca has similar climate and products. Lemons, figs, grapes, vegetables and wild goats; the sea and the good weather; the extended families and ancient traditions.But, I do know that the same dusty road and the almond trees are now a bit different. The river seems smaller and there is no fish. The cars are polluting the one time pure air and pure water. The big pool where we did Olympic competitions is now only good for goldfish to swim.
Then place is the same, so the rocks, the chessa bushes ( pistacia lentiscus) and the olive trees. With them is the good memories of the place and this is what counts most. many people have abandoned the land near by, and this is a sign of failure in recognizing the value of it and the important work to preserve it done by the country men and women.
If biodiversity is disappearing is also due to the abandoned land. There are many good reasons to try to go back to it and after the economic crises of 2008 many places like Spain, Greece and Italy had an increase of young people starting some sort of business related to the cultivation of the land. Hope is there.
Hope the posting will be regularly
